High Park Stewards meet on the 2nd & 4th Sundays of each month, rain or shine.

Waiver Form All Stewards need to sign a City waiver document once a year when working in the park. To save time at the sessions please print and fill out these 2 pages prior to coming to work sessions. We will also have them on site. Waiver Form Instructions

March 24, Water-Loving Native Plants: Site Examples of a Marsh Restoration and an Ecological Swimming Pool

As a director of the North American Plant Society and passionate environmentalist, the presenter, Janice Keil, will take you into the depths of water-loving native plants.

A 97 agricultural acreage in the Land Between (Northumberland County) is home to an ongoing marsh restoration experiment to assess the impact of the invasive Reed Canary Grass on the hydrology of marsh ecosystems. An ecological swimming pool constructed to EU standards using native plants as the sole filtration system in the regeneration zone will be built next year.

Janice Keil grew up on a mixed crop farm in SW Ontario, put herself through university by growing cucumbers commercially for Bicks. That experience turned her towards organic agriculture, a sector she remains active in to this day. After a two decade stint in Toronto, she has happily returned to rural Ontario, living presently in the amazing community of Peterborough . Professionally, she is a secondary school teacher in World Religions and Philosophy with an eclectic array of degrees: Honours Music, M.A. German and Master of Divinity.

She is presently working on a feminist sustainable building project, Active Women Building Passive House that will take place on the 97 acres this summer. This beautiful piece of land will be home to 20 acres of tall grass prairie for seed production, a heritage sheep CSA and organic vegetable/fruit gardens, the produce of which will be donated to women’s shelters. Last but not least, she is an avid native plant enthusiast and has served on the board of directors of the North American Plant Society (NANPS) for the last seven years.

Apr 28, Fusion Gardens - Multi-season sustainability and beauty

“There are many tools available to help the planet and to beautify yards at the same time, including drought-tolerant and biodiversity-enhancing plant choices and weaving in rainscaping techniques.” Or a slight variation: “There are many tools available to help the planet including drought-tolerant and biodiversity-enhancing plant choices as well as weaving in rainscaping techniques, and it’s never necessary to sacrifice beauty to do the right thing.”

Named by GardenMaking magazine as one of “20 Making a Difference”, gardening has been Sean James’ hobby and profession for over 35 years. A graduate of Niagara Parks School of Horticulture, a Master Gardener, writer, and international speaker; Sean is a global leader in eco-friendly landscaping with his work appearing in numerous books and manuals. He’s worked on the national Red Seal educational program, teaches at Mohawk College and sits on the editorial board for Ontario Gardening magazine. He’s the Ontario spokesperson for Garden Days Canada, sits on several environmental committees and has appeared television and radio shows coast-to-coast.

Sean runs an environmentally-friendly company, using eco-friendly materials, recycling, composting and promoting responsible use of biological controls. The office is even powered by Bullfrog Power, using 100% green hydro and natural gas which is harvested from methane from landfills, giving it a zero-carbon footprint.

PHOTOS:Most of our site's photos were contributed by local photographers and taken in High Park. Please do not copy or reproduce them without permission. To contribute photos (low resolution), contact mail@highparknature.org